'How I Stay Mentally Strong While Covering Tragedies Like Hurricane Harvey On TV'

There is something quite surreal about witnessing history. It’s even more surreal to have to process and articulate the enormity of what you are seeing. That’s my job and Sunday, August 27th tested me.

I began the weekend reporting on Hurricane Harvey’s landfall and subsequent pounding of the Texas coast. The storm spanned 280 miles and was basically parked on top of millions of people. What we didn’t know is exactly where it would turn and what impact that would have. Sunday, we learned it was Houston, and it would be devastating.

Unprecedented, catastrophic, epic—we ran out of words to stress just how significant this storm would be.

When my show ended, I walked to my car and I wept. I cried for the unknown—how much worse will this get; there’s still days of rain to come? I cried for the mother we connected live on air to a sheriff because she couldn’t get through to 911, and the water inside her home was waist-high and rising (her 2-year-old baby was floating on a mattress). I cried for the state of Texas that will be rebuilding for years and years to come. And I cried because I was exhausted of the tragedy and conflict and devastation that has become the news cycle.

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But that’s my job. My job is to read every detail of every tragedy and bring you the story in a compelling and compassionate way. As a journalist, this became more difficult when I became a mother. I found particular stories making me physically ill. Have you ever read the police report of a hot car death? Please, never do. I’ve choked up on air more than once.

So when I'm surrounded by tragedy, and feeling overwhelmed, here are the things I do to cope:

1. Be present in moments of joy.

After crying in my car that day, I headed home to assume my most important job: being a mom. I felt incredibly lucky to return to a warm, dry home where my son was blissfully unaware of the tragedy unfolding hundreds of miles away from us. I could have spent that time with him looking sad and feeling even worse. Instead, we played, and read, and laughed over funny faces. I danced awkwardly as he ate dinner to loud music and he thought it was hysterical.

Be in that moment of joy. Stop and soak it in. It won’t change what’s happening outside the walls of your own home, but it will remind you of hope. Hope that better days will come.

2. Meditate.

I know, I know...who has the time!

When meditating with the Dalai Lama, CNN’s Dr. Sanjay Gupta admitted that the practice was "hard" for him. The spiritual leader replied: “Me too." That’s the Dalai Lama! It's challenging for everyone, so you have to make time in order to enjoy its mind-clearing benefits.

I really like the app “Mindfulness." It has meditation sessions that last anywhere from three minutes to an hour. Sometimes if I wake up in the middle of the night and can’t get back to sleep, I turn on the one-hour session. Sometimes if I feel like I don’t have a second in my busy day, I sit in the car for three minutes before I walk into work. You have to care for your mental health just like you do your body.

Another great option to help you unwind: This relaxing yoga pose:

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3. Exercise.

I exercise for sanity, not vanity. It helps not only because it’s good for me and my body, but it also naturally releases endorphins. Those are the feel-good vibes you want flowing, especially during a challenging time. Schedule a workout into your calendar just as you would an appointment to get your car repaired. (This No Gym Required workout is designed to be done at home, to making squeezing in exercise even easier!)

4. Be less social.

No, this does not mean you curl up in a ball under your covers. It means powering down your phone every once in awhile. Part of the fatigue people are feeling is the constant barrage of negative headlines. You see it on the news, then you see it on your news apps, then you read it on your social media timeline. News flash: No one is changing anyone’s mind with a political social media post. Unfollow people who are choosing to be toxic. Soak up the luxury of only seeing your best friend’s baby or back-to-school photos show up. I call them news blackouts, which I try to periodically achieve for a whole day (or one whole week if I’m on vacation).

5. Do something.

Part of what’s so hard about processing the news is that it feels like there’s nothing you can do. How can you stop North Korea’s dictator from launching a nuclear missile toward the U.S. mainland? You can’t. Focusing on what you can’t change will keep you down. You have the power to spread positivity in your actions, so make change where you can. I recently saw a young mom at the drugstore and I could tell by her conversation with the clerk and a mother’s instinct that she was really struggling. I told her I wanted to buy her formula for her baby and with tears in her eyes she asked if I was serious. What could your act of kindness be? Do it. It not only feels great, but imagine what a better place the world would be if that happened more often. It might not change all of the scary headlines, but it could make a big difference for another person.

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